Multiple reports of men approaching girls at Guilford County bus stops

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GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — The Guilford County School District is being proactive about protecting students after a recent string of suspicious activity near bus stops where young girls have been approached by men offering rides.

Since December, there have been five reported incidents throughout the county: four in Greensboro and one in High Point.

High Point police are searching for the most recent suspect who approached a young girl Tuesday morning while waiting for her school bus at Leonard Avenue and Park Street.

The driver asked if she needed a ride. After the girl refused to answer, the man drove off, according to police.

"We have to, as parents, be proactive in making sure our kids are safe at those bus stops," said Cindy Taylor, a teacher at The Academy at Lincoln Middle School in Greensboro.

Taylor says that safety starts with helping her fourth and fifth graders redefine the word "stranger."

"A stranger could be a nice, clean cut person with a candy bar or a puppy," she said. "It doesn't have to be someone dirty or nasty or with a trench coat."

Taylor says she is using the recent string of suspicious behavior to teach her students how to be more aware of their surroundings and how to talk with their parents.

The school district has also been proactive about getting information to parents. This week they started putting pop up alerts on the home page of each school's website.

The school district is also sending voicemails and emails to parents whenever there's been a report of someone suspicious approaching a student.